Dump pocket for scows



Feb. 28, 1933. w. A. sEssloN DUMP POCKET FOR SCOWS Filed NOV. 50, 1931 2 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR PVM/@ AJess/o/z ATTORNEY Feb. 28, 1933. w A SEsslON 1,899,592

DUMP POCKET FOR scows f I Filed Nov. so, 19.51 zvsheets-sheet 2 9 7 5l- WJ W//let AJess/o/z BY x ATTORNEY Patented Feb. 28, 1933 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE WILLET A. SESSION, E Dn'rnorr,` Mrcrrreniv, AssIGNon oEoNE-HALF To Y HELEN A. snssIoN cAvrN DUMP rocKE'r Fon scows Application filed November 30, 1931. Serial No. 578,048.

This invention rela-tes to dump pockets for scows, and more particularly to self closing doors for such pockets.

In the present practice, it is common to f form dump scows with one or more large pockets or chambers for receiving the material to loe-dumped. The discharge of such material is controlled by a pair of doors, forming a bottom for the pocket, when l@ closed, and adapted, when tripped, to swing downwardly to a vertical position. Since the material 'is often dumped in quite shallow water,it has been the practice to mount such doors at a sufficient elevation inthe pocket to avoid their appreciable projection, when open, below the scow bottom. This has reduced` the useful capacity of the pockets and has further entailed a free admission ofk v water to the portions of the pockets below 2G the closed doors, whereby the water resistance opposing travel has been largely increased, as compared to a vessel having a fully closed bottom.

Also, in prior practice, automatic provisions for closing the dump pocket doors have been lacking, and it has consequently been necessary either to provide expensive power-operated Winches for that purpose or hand-operated mechanism requiring much time and arduous labor for its manipulation. i

It has further been required in operating dump pocket doors, as heretofore constructed, to place men upon the scow to effect lowering and raising of the doors, whereby the lives of such men have been endangered in rough weather. p

An object of the present invention is to so form and mount the door of a scow dump 49 pocket as to avoid curtailment of the load capacity of said pocket, and so as to establish said door, in its closed position, substantially flush with the scow bottom. l

Another object is to formthe door of a scow dump pocket with an air chamber and to utilize resulting buoyancy of the door to effect its automatic closing immediately upon emptying of the pocket, thus eliminating the door-closing mechanism now com- 59 monly provided, and saving the time and succession, from the towing tug.r`

powerrequired to operatev such mechanism. A further object is to provide laflatch means automatically effective upon yclosing of a dump pocket door to hold such door in v closed position. p 1 A still further object is to adapt such latchV mechanism kto be readily tripped from the towing tug, eliminating the time, effort, and

danger involved in sending a man or men. on y board the scow preliminary to dumping.

A still further object is to adapt the doors controlling severalpoclrets of a dump scow to be tripped in common, and preferably in It is also an object of the invention to employ buoyancy of a dump pocket door both to actuate'the door to closed position andY to cushion the'impact of the door on its seat. f

These and various other objects the invention-*attains by the construction hereinafter described, and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein: Fig. l is a View in longitudinahside elevation of a dump Vscow equipped with doors and control mechanism in accordance with the present invention, one of said ldoors being shown in dumping position and the other closed. f e y Fig. 2 is a top plan view of lone ofsaid pockets and its door. t Y

Fig. 3 is alongitudinal sectional elevation of said pocket, takenupon the line 3-3 of Fig.2. f

Fig. 4. is a transverse sectional/elevation taken upon the line 4-4 of Fig. 3. v e

In these views, the reference characters l and 2 designate the deck and bottom of aV dump scow formed -of any suitablematerial,- and preferably of sheet metal.V For receiving material to be dumped, Vsaid scow is formed with one or more open-topped pock-V ets 3, each formed by bulkheads 4 (prefen ably of sheet 'metal) rigidly extendingV be-V tween the Vbottom and deckofthe scow and projecting preferablyl some Vdistance'above thedeck, so as to form a combing. v

' The bottom of each pockety 3 is formed by a door 5 comprising upper andlower walls 4spaced to form an air chamberG, preferably coextensive in Varea with the door. I Said door in its closed position is adapted to lit snugly 23 is normally suiiiciently slack that it will into the lower end of the pocket, with its under face substantially flush with the scow bottom.

To the under face of each door is secured a suitable number of hinge members 7 mounting the door upon a shaft 8, located preferably some distance aft of the forward edge of the door. Thus, as illustrated, said A shaft is positioned approximately one-third the door length from the front edge of the door. The shaft 8 has its extremities mounted in a pair of hinge members 9 secured to the scow bottom, one at each side of thek pocket.

` To strongly reinforce the described door and also largely protect the bulkheads 4 from material in the pocket, a pair of vertical plates 10 are upwardly extended from vt-he lateral margins of the door, and are rigidly connected by a plate 11 secured to and rising from the forward edge of the door.' Said of latch lbolts plates extend in heightapproximately to the top of the pocket, when the door isfclosed. The rear edges 12 of the plates 10 transcribe arcs substantially centered in the pivotal axis of the door, so that the plates may clear the rear bulkhead 4, as the door is swung.

The door member is preferably further re-V inforced by a metal top plate 13, parallel to the members 5, extending rearwardly from the upper edge of the plate 11 'and Vrigidly connecting the forward portions of the plates 10. v

` l The rear bulkhead 4 of each pocket preferably'carries within the pocket a'heavy timber 14 to form a seat for the closed door and receive the impact of its closing travel.

' To hold the described door normally closed, there is mounted upon the inner faces of the side plates 10 adjacent to their arcuate rear edges a pair of coaxial, peripherally grooved rollers 15, for engagement bya pair 16. These are preferably mounted in substantially radial'relation to said arcuate edges, and are slidable in suitlable' bearings 17 carried by the side bulkheads of each pocket. The bolts 16 project freely through the rear bulkhead and are rigidly connected `above the deck 1 by a cross bar 18 which compels their travel in unison.

vFor retracting the described latch bolts,

the mid portion of each cross bar 18 carries a socket member 19 into which extends the short lower `arm of a bell 'crank lever 20. The

Vlatter is pivoted as indicated at 21, in close proximity to said socket members, and further comprises an upwardly extending arm of a length aording powerful leverage.

For actuating the levers 20 totrip the doors of theseveral pockets, a trip cable 22 Ais engaged with the upper extremity of the rearmost of said levers, and'is connected through y*a short extension cable 23 with each of the remaining levers 20. Each extension not actuate the engaged lever until the main cable 22 has been released from such lever or levers 20 as are rearward of that engaged by said extension. Attachment of the cable 22 and its extension 23 to the levers 20 is established preferably through loops 23a slipped over the upper ends of said levers, the arrangement being such that upon actuation of any lever 20`to its forwardly inclined latch-tripping position the resulting lever incline permits release of the trip line or its extension from such lever by a continued pull onv the line. Thus, it is seen that the cable 22 with its extension (or extensions) provides a vmeans for tripping the several levers 2O in a succession, which progresses from stern to bow of the scow.

This arrangement also makes possible attachment of the trip line to the several levers 2O subsequent to loading of the scow and prior to towing of same to the dumping point. Since the loading location of the scow is Generally well sheltered, it follows that attachment-of the tripping lines to the levers entails no serious danger, even in rough weather. This is not the case if men were required to board the scow atthe point of dumping, as Vin prior practice. It will, of course, be understood that the tripping line is extended to the towing' tug and is oper* able therefrom. Y

Following a retraction of the bolts 16, the latter will ordinarily be returned `by gravity to their latching positions upon discontinu- 'ance of the tripping effort. It. is preferred, however, to associate with each cross bar 18 a coiled spring 24 eective to positively project the latch bolts connected bysuch bar. A Opening travel vof the pocket doors is `suitably limited, as for example by mounting a Vpair of stop blocks 25 upon the ends of the top plate 13 for engagement with the bearings 17. An approximate 45 `degree inclination of the described doors in their limiting take such abrasion as is incidental to loadingand discharging of material. said lining being conveniently renewable.

An important feature of the described in- -vention is the self-closing operation of the described doors. Thus, immediately upon emptying of any pocket, buoyancy secured by provision of the air chamber 6 serves to promptly leffect an automatic closing of the door of such pocket. lt is to be noted that .the buoyant force exerted yby the portion of the chamber 6 located forwardly of the pivotal axis predeterminedly opposes closing travel, thus cushioning the seating impact of the door and reducing the violence of its opening travel.

It is in many instances desirable to operate dump scows during freezing weather. Heretofore operation during such weather' has provenl very troublesome owing to the hopper contents forming a single frozen mass and consequently refusing to discharge upon opening Aof the doors. v

The present invention `provides for elimination of such trouble by adapt-ing the chamber 6 to be iilled, during loadingof the scow with live steam. Thus sufiicient heat is communicated to the material before towing to the dumping point to avoid freezing of the material during such towing.

Preferably steam delivery and discharge pipes 28 and 29 extend upward Ifrom the chamber6 adjacent to the plate 1l, andeach b preferably also adjacent to 4one of the plates l0. The delivery pipe projects sutliciently above the plate 13 to permit attachment cf Steamsupplying hose or pipe (not shown) thereto, while the pipe Q9 need merely open to the atmosphere through said plate, Preferably the discharge pipe has a capacity considerably less than that of the delivery pipe so as to build up aslight 'pressure of steam in the chamber 6.

As compared to the practice now common 'of employing a pair of dump poclre't doors pivoted to swing on axes at each side of the pocket, parallel to the direction cf travel of the scow, numerous features of superiority are present in the described construction. As has been pointed out, the latter oers a much lesser resistance to travel of the scow than present constructions. It is further to be noted that the described typeof door permits unloading of the scow in much shallower water than has heretofore been 'permissible. Thus, the scow bottom may, if desired7 be grounded when the doors are tripped. The weight of the doors and their vload is then largely transferred to the ground surface underlying the scow, Vthus very materially lightening the latter and permitting it to correspondingly rise. This so increases the degree of opening of the doors that, even though their discharge inclination be slight, the pockets may be readily emptied by advancing the scow.

IVhile it is apparent that the illustrated embodimentof my invention is well calculated to adequately fulfill the objects and ad-l vantages primarily stated, it is .to be understood that the invention is susceptible to varia-tion, modification and change within the spirit and scope of the subjoined claims.

What I claim is: y

1. In a scow having a dump pocket, a door pivoted adjacent to the bottom of said pocket pockets, doors controlling the discharge from said pockets, latch mechanisms'holding said doors normally closed, and means to successively trip said latch mechanisms operative from a point vremote from said mechanisms.

3. In a scow having a dump pocket, a door normally forming a bottom for said pocket and pivotally downwardly actuable to an limiting opening travel of said door.

4. In a scow having aY dump pocket, adoor controlling the discharge fromsaid pocket, 1

formed with a steam chamber flo-r heating the pocket .contents7V and means for delivering steam to and discharging it from said cham- Y 5. In a scow having a dump pocket, a door controlling the discharge from said pocket,

formed with an air chamber imparting to said door a buoyancy adequate to effect its.v

automatic closing, and means for delivering steam to and from said chamber for heating the contents of the pocket in freezing weather. c l

6. In a scow having a dump pocket, a door controlling said pocket, pivoted adjacent to the lower end of said pocket, and having its pivotal axis transverse to the scow, saiddoor being formed with an air pocket having a major portion extended aft and a minor portion extended forward of its pivotal axis,

whereby said door is rendered buoyantly selfclosing and is buoyantly cushioned in its closing travel.

In testimony whereof I sign this specification.

WILLET A. session.

open position, and means within said pocket l80 v 

